She didn’t respond.
He checked her pulse. “Normal. Okay, I guess I need to get you out of these wet things.” Nathaniel unbuttoned her shirt and then leaned her forward to remove it. His eyes widened to the size of saucers when he got a look at Alicia’s lacy black bra. Though he’d been impressed with her in a bathing suit, this took the cake. “Wow.” He stopped to think. “I think I’d better stop here. Somehow I don’t think I’ll be able to explain why your skirt’s off.” He wrapped the blanket around her and went to the extra bedroom to dry off and change his clothes.
Just as he pulled his pants up the phone rang.
“Hello?”
“Hey there, baby.”
“Hi, Vivian, what’s up?” he said as he walked back out to the living room.
“Nothing much. I wanted to see if you’d like company,” she purred.
“Thanks, but I’m not up to it today,” he said quietly.
“Oh, what’s wrong? You don’t feel well?”
“I think I’m coming down with a little sore throat or something.” He cleared his throat.
“Then you should write a prescription for yourself.”
“It doesn’t really work that way, Vivian.”
“Then have one of the other doctors do it for you.”
“I’ll be okay.”
Alicia groaned aloud. “Where am I?”
“Listen, I’ve got to run. I’ll talk to you later.” He quickly hung up. “Hey there, you’re up.” He walked over to the sofa. “You’re in my living room.”
“Mr. Becker?”
“Yes, you’re in my house. Please call me Nathaniel or Nate.”
Alicia lifted the blanket and realized she was wet and not wearing a top. “Okay, Nathaniel.” She tried to think. “I can’t remember what happened. Why am I wet?”
“You don’t remember? You fainted and fell into your pool.”
“And you dove in and saved me?”
“Yes. I saw you go in when I stepped outside.”
“Wow. Did I stop breathing?”
“You had water in your lungs. I gave you mouth to mouth until you coughed up the water.”
“Then I guess I can’t be upset over my missing shirt.”
“I couldn’t let you stay in your wet clothes, so I took your shirt off and wrapped you up in the blanket. I didn’t want you to catch cold from the AC. I am a doctor.”
“I know. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” He smiled. “I was going to put some water on for tea. Would you like some?”
“Yes, that would be nice.”
Alicia looked around Nathaniel’s place. It wasn’t the den of inequity with disco lights, stripper pole and wet bar as she’d imagined. In fact, his place was tastefully decorated with a sofa, loveseat, coffee table and artwork from different parts of the globe. This is certainly unexpected.
Alicia put her hand over her mouth to hide her smile when Nathaniel emerged from the kitchen with a tea service.
She sat up as he placed it on the coffee table.
“I have lemon, cream, honey and sugar. I wasn’t sure how you take your tea.”
“I take it with sugar and lemon, thank you.”
“As you wish.” He poured the tea and squeezed a lemon. “How many sugars?”
“Two.”
He fixed her tea and handed it to her. “Here you go, Ms. Archer.”
“Thank you.” She sipped it slowly. “I guess now that you’ve seen me in my bra, you can call me Alicia.”
He laughed. “Thanks, Alicia.” He sipped some tea, then put the cup down. “How are you feeling now?”
“Good. I remember what happened now. I locked myself out of the house. Then I got all bent out of shape about it and I overheated.”
“I read your medic alert tag.”
“You did?” she asked nervously.
“I know you have MS and that’s probably why you fainted this morning. You know you really shouldn’t be out in the heat. It isn’t good for you.”
She hung her head. “I know. I’m stupid.”
“Listen, Alicia, you may have done a stupid thing, but stupid isn’t a word I’d use to describe you.”
“Thanks. That makes me feel better.”
“How long ago were you diagnosed? If you don’t mind me asking.”
“Nearly two years ago.”
“I see. Are you on any of the injections?”
“Yes. I started with Avonex a little while back.”
He nodded his head knowingly. “Did you do an injection recently?”
“Yes, I did my shot on Friday.”
He nodded knowingly. “That explains your fever yesterday. One of the side effects of Avonex is a fever or flu-like symptoms. In some patients it manifests like their skin is getting too hot, but it’s actually the medication.”
“My neurologist told me about it, but I thought that since it hadn’t happened before, I was in the clear.”
“The body is a fickle thing. One day something doesn’t bother it and another day it does. That’s why we doctors practice medicine.”
“Good point. You’re not going to tell anyone about my MS, are you?”
“No. There’s this little thing called doctor/patient privilege.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
The way he stared at her unnerved Alicia a little. “I must look a mess.” She combed through her curly auburn locks with her fingers.
“You look beautiful.” He paused. “You’ll have to excuse me if I’m staring. I’ve never seen you with your hair down before. I didn’t realize how long it was.”
“Wearing my hair up kind of goes along with the domestic diva image.”
“You look good either way.”
“Thanks,” she said bashfully.
Suddenly there was a pounding at the door.
“Nate! Are you home?” Harrison shouted.
“It seems the National Guard has come looking for you.”
“Oh, my God. I bet he’s worried out of his mind.”
He stood up. “Well, we’ll just put his mind to rest.” Nathaniel went to the door while Alicia continued drinking her tea.
“Nate!” Harrison continued pounding.
Nathaniel opened the door.
“Thank God you’re here.” He caught his breath. “I just got back and I can’t find Alicia anywhere. Please tell me you’ve seen her.”
“Come on in, Harry. She’s in here. It seems she had a little accident by the pool this morning.”
“She had an accident?” He sounded panicked.
Nathaniel put his hand on his shoulder to reassure him. “Don’t worry, she’s fine. Follow me.” He led Harrison back to the living room.
“Thank God.” He rushed over and hugged her. “You scared me to death. What happened? Why are you wet?”
“One thing at a time, Harrison,” she said.
“If I may?” Nathaniel asked.
“Go ahead.”
“She fainted from the heat outside and fell into the pool.”
“Oh, my God.”
“Calm down, Harrison. Lucky for me Nathaniel saw me go in and he pulled me out.”
“Thanks, Nate. You’re definitely a hero.”
“You really are,” Alicia agreed.
“I was just at the right spot at the right time. But young lady, you need to take your condition more seriously. MS isn’t anything to play with.”
“Yes, Doctor.”
“I think I’d better get this young lady back home and into bed.” Harrison stood up.
“Sounds like a good idea.” Nathaniel smiled. “You need to take it easy.”
“I will.” She sat up and looked around the sofa. “Where’s my shirt?”
“Right here.” He picked it up and handed it to her. “I put it over there to dry out a little. It’s probably damp.”
She felt the shirt. “It’s good enough.” She took the blanket off.
“I’ll tur
n away,” Nathaniel said.
“I appreciate the gesture, but I think that horse has left the stable.” She put the shirt back on and then stood up. Harrison helped her.
“Take it easy.”
“I’m okay.” They began walking to the door.
Once they got there Nathaniel held the door open.
“Thank you again,” she said.
“I’m glad I was there.”
“Me, too.” She smiled.
They stepped outside.
“I’ll give you an update later, Doc.”
“I’m counting on it, Harry,” he called back.
Harrison waited until they were a few steps away from Nathaniel’s house. “And I thought politics made for strange bedfellows.”
“Very funny, Harrison,” Alicia said dryly. “Can I just go to bed in peace?”
“Sure. We’ll talk about this later. You can bet on it.” He helped her upstairs and into bed.
* * *
Harrison was in the kitchen when the doorbell rang.
“I’ll be right there,” he called as he walked to the door.
“It’s us, Harrison!” Lauren called back.
He opened the door. “Hi. Come on in.” He wiped his hands on a dish towel.
Lauren hugged him. “Thanks for calling us.”
Gabby hugged Harrison too. “Where is she?”
“She’s asleep upstairs.”
“That’s good. She probably needs the rest.”
“There’s no probably about it,” Lauren added.
They walked into the living room.
“So what in the world happened, Harrison?” Lauren asked as she sat on the sofa.
“I don’t know exactly. When I left this morning, she was in her office checking emails, and when I got back from the store, I couldn’t find her anywhere.”
“After yesterday shouldn’t she have been in bed?”
“Wait a minute. What happened yesterday?”
“Gabby didn’t tell you?”
“No.”
“I’m sorry, I was going to tell you later. Alicia started to get sick yesterday at the luncheon. She had a fever.”
“A fever? Did she go to the doctor?”
“No. The doctor came to her.”
“That’s right, I did hear you talking about Nate being there,” Lauren recalled.
“He was there. He told her to get some bed rest.”
“It appears she listened to him for a little while. She was getting ready to take a nap when I spoke to her Monday afternoon. So she actually managed to rest for a while.”
“Until work beckoned her again.” Gabby crossed her legs.
“We’re a little off track here, Harrison. Why in the world was she outside? It’s hotter than hell out there and heat isn’t good for her.”
“I know. When I left, she told me she was staying inside. I don’t know why she went outside.”
“We won’t know that until she gets up. What did Nate say happened?”
“You can ask him for yourself, if you’d like. He’s home.”
“Maybe we’ll do that.” Lauren turned to Gabby. “Are you game?”
“Sure, I’m dying to know.”
Lauren stood up. “Call me on my cell if she wakes up before we get back.”
“Okay.”
Two minutes later Gabby and Lauren were at Nathaniel’s door. Lauren rang the bell.
“You know Alicia would kill us for this.”
“She’ll get over it.”
Nathaniel opened the door. “Lauren, Gabby, how nice to see you.”
“Hi, Nate. I hope we’re not disturbing you.”
“Not at all, come on in and get out of the heat.” He stepped back to let them in.
“Thanks.”
He closed the door behind them. “Come into the living room.” He led them in. “Ladies, have seats, please. Can I get you anything to drink?”
“Nothing for me. What about you, Gabby?”
“I’m fine, too.”
Gabby and Lauren looked around.
“You have a nice place here, Nate.”
“Thanks, Gabby.” He sat down. “So to what do I owe the pleasure?”
“Harrison called and told us what happened with Alicia earlier.”
He nodded. “It was a little scary.”
“Apparently you’re a hero, diving into the water and rescuing her,” Gabby said.
“I’m just glad I was there.”
“So are we,” Lauren added. “We came over to thank you.”
“There’s no need for thanks.”
“According to Harrison, it’s the second time in two days you’ve come to Alicia’s rescue.”
“You helped her when she got sick at the luncheon,” Gabby interjected.
“Again, I happened to be at the right place at the right time.” He smiled.
“That might be true, but not too many people would have known what to do,” Lauren said.
“With a headache?” Nathaniel looked perplexed.
“No,” Lauren laughed, “when she went into the pool.”
“Oh.”
“A lot of people would have panicked even if they knew what to do.”
“Maybe my training as a doctor kicked in. We have to remain calm in tense situations. I simply dove in, pulled Alicia out and gave her mouth to mouth until she coughed up the water and was breathing again.”
“That’s all, he says.” Lauren’s mouth was agape.
“It’s true.” He leaned forward in his chair. “How is she?”
“She’s sleeping.”
“Good. She needs the rest. Her body had quite a shock today.”
“True.”
“Harry should be sure to contact her neurologist for an appointment.”
Lauren and Gabby looked at each other nervously.
“Yes, I know she has MS. Don’t worry, she’s covered under doctor/patient privilege.”
“We’re not worried about that. We’re just surprised she told you.” Gabby said.
“She didn’t tell me per se. I’ve had my suspicions for a while.”
“You have?” Lauren was a little shocked.
“Yes. I just noticed little things, like how she modified her yoga and tai chi exercises.”
Gabby and Lauren looked at each other, smiling. “You noticed how she modified her exercise routine?” Gabby asked.
Nathaniel looked a little self-conscious. “Don’t get me wrong. I’m not stalking her.”
“We didn’t think you were,” Lauren answered sweetly.
“I’ve occasionally seen her exercising outside some mornings. I also have a friend who’s a physical therapist and he does the same routines with his MS patients.”
“Oh, okay.” Lauren nodded.
“Then yesterday I noticed her gait was off a bit at the luncheon.”
“You noticed her gait?” Gabby asked.
“Yes. Alicia’s got such a regal walk, I couldn’t help but notice it wasn’t quite the same.”
Lauren and Gabby looked at each other knowingly.
Nathaniel looked at his watch. “Well, I hate to rush but I’m covering for one of my partners this afternoon. I really have to get going.”
They stood up. “Oh, we won’t keep you,” Lauren said.
He walked them to the door. “I was going to stop by later to check on Alicia. Do you think that would be okay?”
“Sure.” Gabby grinned. “I’m sure she’d like that.”
He opened the door.
“Thanks again, Nate. Maybe we’ll see you later.”
“You ladies have a good day.”
“We will,” Gabby responded.
The door closed behind them as they headed back to Alicia’s.
“Did you hear that?”
“I certainly did. It seems Dr. Becker has another concentration besides medicine.” Lauren smirked.
* * *
Later on Harrison, Lauren and Gabby were in Alicia’s bedroom.
“Did Kurt call back yet?” Lauren asked.
“No, they’ve been trying to reach him. He’s off-site and doesn’t seem to have any cell phone reception.”
“Good grief.”
“They sent someone out to let him know. I expect he’ll be calling any time now.”
“Good.” Lauren looked at a sleeping Alicia. “I know she’ll think we shouldn’t have called him, but he deserves to know.”
“I’ve been trying to call Walt and Loretta, but they haven’t called me back yet.” Harrison said.
“Don’t call my parents,” Alicia mumbled.
“Oh, she’s alive.” Gabby went over to the bed.
“I was only sleeping.”
“You’ve been knocked out for a while today. How are you feeling?”
“I’m okay, Harrison.”
“You certainly scared the hell out of us.” Lauren hugged her.
Gabby echoed the sentiment. “That’s the truth.”
“I’m sorry to have scared you. I think I scared myself.” She sat up slowly.
“I made some soup. Would you like some?” Harrison asked.
“You made soup in June?”
“Well, shoot me. I didn’t know the right dish to serve after someone nearly drowns. So I made soup.”
“Okay, Harrison, don’t be so touchy. I was just kidding. I would love some soup.”
“Okay, I’ll be right back.” He left.
“You know he blames himself for what happened.”
“It wasn’t his fault, Lauren. I’m the dunderhead. I’ll talk to him.”
“Good. In the meantime you can talk to us and tell us what happened.”
“What possessed you to go outside in this heat?” Gabby sat on her bed.
“Is this an inquisition?”
“Yes, at this point it is.” Lauren sat down.
Alicia knew she’d been painted into a corner. “I was going through my email and that zygote…”
“I should have known this had something to do with Taylor Dawes.” Lauren hung her head.
“I really think she’s trying to push me out.”
“You have to stop being so paranoid, Alicia. She’s just the managing editor.”
“Who has designs on my office, Gabby. I don’t trust her, and after today I really don’t think I’m imagining things.”
“What happened today?” Lauren asked.
Waiting for Mr. Darcy Page 12
